By CHRISTINE HAUGHNEY

April 25, 2013

The company also announced plans to introduce lower-cost subscription models, part of a broader growth strategy.

The company is remaking itself in the face of the struggles in both print and online advertising. In the first quarter, net income was $3.1 million, or 2 cents a share, down from $42.1 million, or 28 cents a share, in the period a year earlier. Income from continuing operations declined to $3.1 million from $8.7 million a year earlier.

Total revenue from the quarter declined 2 percent, to $465.9 million. Over all, the company’s advertising revenue declined 11.2 percent, to $191.2 million from $215.5 million. Print advertising at the company’s newspapers, which include The New York Times, The Boston Globe and The International Herald Tribune, shrank 13.3 percent. Digital advertising revenue declined 4 percent. Times executives attributed these advertising troubles to declines in spending by movie studios and real estate developers.

In a continuing bright spot for the company, circulation revenue grew by 6.5 percent as The New York Times stepped up its digital subscription initiatives and raised prices for its print edition. The number of paid subscribers to the Web site, e-reader and other digital editions of The Times and The International Herald Tribune grew to 676,000, a jump of almost 49 percent from the same quarter the year before. Digital subscriptions to The Boston Globe and BostonGlobe.com rose more than 50 percent compared with the same time the year before, to 32,000 subscribers.

“Our first-quarter results reflect our continued strides in reshaping The New York Times Company,” Mark Thompson, the company’s president and chief executive, said in a statement. “We will be rolling out other strategic initiatives designed to further leverage The Times brand and newsroom to create new products and services for a wider range of customers, domestically and around the globe.”

The company also disclosed more details about its growth strategy on Thursday. Mr. Thompson said that the company planned to provide varied subscription plans that allow readers to pay only for access to select major news stories or narrow content on politics or arts. Avid readers could buy a premium subscription that would include access to events at The Times. The company also plans to get more involved in brand extensions, like games and e-commerce, and grow its conference business.

“We want to deepen our relationship with our existing loyal customers, but we also want to use a wider family of New York Times products to reach new customers both here and around the world,” said Mr. Thompson. “The initiatives we are announcing today should be seen as a significant first step in our effort to put The New York Times Company on a path to sustainable growth.”

In recent years, the company has been trying to pare down its assets to focus exclusively on its flagship, The New York Times. Most recently, the company announced plans to sell the New England Media Group, which includes The Globe. The company said it would rename The International Herald Tribune as The International New York Times and introduce a redesigned Web site to cater to international audiences.

Investors seemed to find bright spots to the latest earnings reports, despite concerns about the advertising slowdown. Alexia S. Quadrani, an analyst at JPMorgan Chase, said she liked that The Times was trying to find new way to make money.

“The last thing you want to see is somebody who will not try something new,” said Ms. Quadrani.